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The property lies within the Trans Mexican Volcanic Belt about 120 kilometres southeast of the Pachuca gold/silver deposit which has reported historic production of 1.4 billion ounces of silver and 7 million ounces of gold. The Ixtaca vein zone is a blind discovery with little surface manifestation. Based upon observations at surface and of core as drilling progresses, there is now thought to be at least two major sets of veins; one along bedding striking roughly 150 to 170 degrees and one perpendicular to bedding striking roughly 50 to 70 degrees. The overall vein zone is still thought to have a north-easterly trend but true widths cannot be calculated with confidence at this time. Drilling has resumed at 100 degrees, an orientation currently thought to best intersect both sets of veining as well as mineralised dikes, the orientation of which is not currently understood.
Assay data from holes TU-10-7, TU-10-8 and TU-10-9 are awaited and drilling is currently underway on holes TU-10-10 and TU-10-11.
DRILL HOLES TU-10-1, TU-10-2, TU-10-3: August 9th, 2010 news release
The three holes drilled to date, TU-10-1, TU-10-2, TU-10-3, were fanned out in a small area, each in a different direction to test the prospect. It is now apparent that all three holes were collared within the vein zone. This zone is now thought to have a general northeasterly trend but at this time true widths cannot be calculated with confidence.
Additionally, individual veins have several different apparent attitudes and may not be oriented parallel to the strike of the overall vein zone. Aimed at the centre of the resistivity anomaly, hole TU-10-1 was drilled at 110 degrees with a -55 degree dip and is considered to be oriented oblique to the vein zone. Hole TU-10-2 was drilled away from TU-10-1 with an azimuth of 330 degrees and a dip of -55 degrees. Hole TU-10-3 was drilled at an azimuth of 150 degrees with a dip of -50 degrees.
Of the three holes, TU-10-1 is believed to have most completely crossed the core of the vein zone while holes TU-10-2 and TU-10-3 are thought to have been collared closer to the hangingwall and footwall respectively. Accordingly lower vein frequency was observed in holes TU10-2 and TU-10-3. The assay results from TU-10-1 suggest that gold and silver grades may be increasing with depth. This is consistent with the shallow portions of epithermal vein systems as represented at the surface of the Ixtaca Zone. Holes TU-10-2 and TU-10-3 are likely to have only intersected shallow levels of the portions of the vein system they crossed.
DRILL HOLES TU-10-4 & TU-10-5: November 23rd, 2010 news release
Holes TU-10-4 and TU-10-5 were collared at azimuth 150 degrees and dips of -48 and -55 respectively. The holes were designed to cross the veins intersected in hole TU-10-1, the discovery hole reported in an Almaden news release of August 9th 2010 and were drilled at right angles to at what was interpreted to be the strike of the vein system (50 degrees azimuth). Both holes intersected multiple quartz-carbonate-sulphide vein zones over significant widths. Hole TU-10-4 intersected 158.0 meters (from 189.10 to 347.10 meters) averaging 0.94 g/t gold and 61.1 g/t silver (2.2 g/t AuEq and 108 g/t AgEq). Hole TU-10-5 intersected 230.43 meters (from 146.40 to 379.13 meters) averaging 0.51 g/t gold and 42.0 g/t silver (1.3 g/t AuEq and 67 g/t AgEq). Multiple higher grade intervals were also intersected in both holes (including 0.85 m of 8.83 g/t gold and 1337.0 g/t Ag in hole TU-10-4 and 0.52 m of 37.4 g/t Au and 466 g/t Ag in hole TU-10-5).
DRILL HOLE TU-10-6: November 24th, 2010 news release
Hole TU-10-6 was collared with an azimuth of 150 degrees and dip of -50 degrees and intersected multiple quartz-carbonate-sulphide vein zones over significant widths. The entire zone of veining averaged 0.86 g/t gold and 61.7 g/t silver (2.1 g/t AuEq or 105 g/t AgEq) over 126.22 meters (from 295.58 to 421.80 meters). Multiple higher grade intervals were also intersected within this zone including 19.18 meters (from 317.50 to 336.68 meters) of 2.84g/t gold and 160.2 g/t silver (6.0 g/t AuEq or 302 g/t AgEq).
Please click maps to see large pdfs of the sections.
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 Overview: Drill Holes TU-10-1,
TU-10-2, & TU-10-3
(August 9th, 2010) |
 Drill Hole TU10-1
(August 9th, 2010)
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 Drill Hole TU10-2
(August 9th, 2010)
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 Drill Hole TU-10-3
(August 9th, 2010) |
 Overview: Interval highlights up to Drill Holes TU-10-4 & TU-10-5
(November 23rd, 2010) |
 Drill Holes TU-10-4 & TU-10-5
(November 23rd, 2010) |
 Drill Hole TU-10-6
(November 24th, 2010) |
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